New Historic House: House Style/Date and Advice Welcome!

[caseymw118 (WavyGlass)]

Hello all,

I am new to the site. My husband and I just bought a house that we believe to be built in the mid to late 1880s. We hope to restore her to some of her original glory. Over the years there have been some obvious changes and additions, but we would like to make our home more typical of the period.

We have already done a little bit of work, including stripping paint from the banister and taking out the carpet on the main staircase. The photos were taken as we were moving in, so please excuse any mess.

Does anyone have anymore insight as to style or date range?

Have any advice for restoring certain aspects of the house? Both interior and exterior would be helpful. Thank you!

Follow the link below for some pictures: https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set ... 5da9b78776

[Neighmond]

Pretty house! My advice is this: Before you make any real big changes to the layout, live with the house in its current layout for a year-what seems like foolishness may wind up being sensible and well-reasoned.

Cheers!
Chaz

[heartwood]

welcome casey!

a grand house, really like the front entrance...

as has been proven over and over again, chaz is a smart man with good advice...i second the suggestion that you get to know your house before making major changes...

...jade

[Vintrest (WavyGlass)]

The house has already been through changes as the porch has no stylistic clues in its current configuration. The massing of the house is consistent with late Victorian. Assuming the entry is original it provides the only stylistic clues with its Colonial Revival style fanlight transom and sidelights-but that too could be a post-1900 replacement for an earlier entry. I'd also concur with the others to learn more about your house and take some time before making any major changes. If you could find an older photo showing how your house looked in the past it might be helpful to determine the original style and aid in replacing missing details. I'd hope the interior has more surviving period details than the exterior; otherwise, you're left with basically a blank slate but it would be costly and time consuming to take it back to an 1880's appearance. The house looks nicely maintained which is a plus.

[Vintrest (WavyGlass)]

After looking at your FB interior photos I concur with your 1880's assessment. The stained glass bordered windows belong to the Queen Anne style and the occasional bulls eye corner blocks and wide milled trim boards are also consistent with the era. I'm wondering what's going on with the big white "mantel" with the ornate inside metal border...maybe the plain external boards are covering over an original mantel or the old one was taken off? Since it costs less and takes less time, you might focus on interior work to bring the house back to its Victorian origins. The staircase is the best intact period detail and you can reconstruct the rest of the original Victorian house around it. I'm thinking the Colonial style entry may not be original but it would be best to find an old photograph showing the original than try to recreate a conjectural entry. The existing one is not bad and far better than a home improvement version. Good luck with your project and congratulations on your new-old home.

[Powermuffin]

Your new home seems to be in great condition. The kitchen cupboards are wonderful, and the trim (all over) looks original.

I would check with the local historical society, building department and library to see if you can find any pictures of your home. I am guessing trim work has been removed from the outside at least.

Please keep us posted as to what you find out and how your projects go. I too recommend waiting a year to make big changes.
Diane

[Kashka-Kat]

Never mind us- what does your CAT think? Looks like he inspected the place pretty well

[caseymw118 (WavyGlass)]

Great advice from all! Besides working on the staircase and maybe some painting, we don't plan to do anything else to the house this year. We were hoping to do some more research and pinpoint exactly what we want.

The house flows really well in its current configuration, so unless we realize something needs to change, then I doubt we will make any major changes.

I am hoping to restore some small details.

One of the reasons we bought the house is because it has been so well maintained over the years. The 80-year-old woman we bought it from really fixed it up. Her sons are contractors and her husband had been one, so the work that was done was really well done. She added the powder room downstairs and added a bathroom to the main bedroom upstairs. She also fixed the back decks, among a number of other issues.

Our inspector commented on how well maintained the house is and the fact that, as is typical of these houses, it is a house built to last. He was impressed with the size and quality of the woods used to build it (which he saw in both the basement and attic).


Although I have yet to do searching at the historical society, I have been doing some property record searching online. I cannot find a clear indication of when the house was built, but the first (1880s -1895) people who owned the property were engaged in a large lumber business at the highest levels. Perhaps this explains the solidity and quality of the woods used to build the house. I will you keep you updated as I find out more information and as we undertake any small projects.

Thank you!!

[caseymw118 (WavyGlass)]

Kashka-Kat,

The cats (yes, we have 5 cats) really love the house! Haha. It is a large enough house that 5 cats doesn't seem like so much. There are plenty of windows and comfy napping spots for them to hang out. It is keeping up with the litterboxes that is the real hassle!

Unfortunately, both my husband and I have a soft spot for cats. I am pretty sure I'm more than on my way to crazy cat lady status. 5 cats... big historic house...sounds about right.

[lisascenic]

Unfortunately, both my husband and I have a soft spot for cats. I am pretty sure I'm more than on my way to crazy cat lady status. 5 cats... big historic house...sounds about right.

Waving hello from California. I'm a crazy cat lady with a wee historic cottage.